Encapsulation of cobalt porphyrins in organically modified silica gel glasses and their nonlinear optical properties

Abstract

2,3,7,8,12,13,17,18-octaethyl-21H,23H-porphyrin Cobalt(II) (CoPor) was introduced into nanostructured organically modified silica (ORMOSIL) using a sol–gel technique. Scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), thermogravimetric analysis, and UV–Vis spectroscopy were performed to investigate the morphology, structure, thermal stability, and linear optical properties of the resulting gel glasses. The FT-IR spectrum and UV–Vis spectra strongly indicated the formation of a silica gel glass network and the successful encapsulation of CoPor in ORMOSIL silica gel glasses, respectively. The introduction of guest CoPor molecules induces silica to form more condensed surface characteristics, owing to the fact that CoPor can promote the hydrolysis and polycondensation procedure, and hence have better thermal stability as compared to blank silica gel glasses. Meanwhile, the dimerization phenomenon in a liquid matrix can be effectively suppressed in a silica solid-state matrix and is attributed to the ‘cage protection effect.’ The nonlinear optical (NLO) properties of CoPor gel glasses were investigated using the open-aperture Z-scan technique at 532 nm. The NLO performance of CoPor-incorporated solid-state silica gel glasses has been improved in comparison with those dispersed in dimethylformamide solution. More significantly, the NLO properties of CoPor-doped ORMOSIL gel glasses can be controlled by adjusting the concentration of the CoPor molecules.